1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to industrial vehicles such as forklift trucks, and more particularly, to forklift trucks that are characterized by their front pillars, which support overhead guards.
2. Description of the Related Art
As shown in FIG. 4, a typical forklift truck has a mast 42 which is mounted on the front side of its body 41. A carriage 43 is connected to the mast 42. Forks 44 are supported by the carriage 43. The carriage 43 and the forks 44 are integrally raised and lowered with respect to the mast 42. The mast 42 is supported in a tiltable manner. A tilting cylinder 45 tilts the mast 42 between a vertical position, a forward tilting position, and a rearward tilting position.
Front pillars 47 and rear pillars 48 are provided at the front and rear side of a cab 46. An overhead guard 49 is supported above the cab 46 by the pillars 47, 48. The overhead guard 49 protects an operator, who sits on a seat 46a, from falling objects.
The front pillars 47 are linear and inclined so as not to interfere with the tilting of the mast 42. As illustrated by the double-dotted line in FIG. 4, there are types of forklift trucks having front pillars 47, the top section of which is curved. The front pillars 47 are made of square pipes. Headlights 50 and turn signals (not shown) are mounted on the front pillars 47. A grip 51 is also attached to the side surface of one of the front pillars 47.
As described above, the front pillars 47 extend upward from their lower ends and are inclined in a manner that lessens the space of the cab 46. This narrows the space through which the operator moves when getting on or off the forklift truck. In other words, the operator must avoid the front pillar 47 to get in or out of the cab 46. The narrow structure makes it difficult for the operator to get on or off the forklift truck. To solve this problem, the front pillars 47 may be arranged with a steeper inclination so that they extend only slightly inclined with respect to the vertical direction. However, the space required to mount the headlights 50 becomes insufficient when employing this structure.
As shown by the double-dotted line, the lower end of the front pillars 47 may be arranged at a more forward position to lessen the inclination of the pillars 47 while providing sufficient space for the operator. However, this structure consumes space at the front side of the pillars 47. Therefore, this structure may not be employed when there is not enough space in front of the pillars 47.
Additionally, although the grip 51 is provided on the front pillar 47 to assist the operator when getting on or off the forklift truck, the operator often grips the pillar 47 instead of the grip 51 when doing so. However, since the conventional front pillars 47 are made of square pipes, it is difficult for the operator to grip the pillar 47.